Aliens Aren't Real
by Silver Butterfly 111
Summary: A peaceful night looking at the stars turns into a bit of an argument when Carlos claims to see a UFO.


The stars were endless, so many, so infinite and the sky went on forever. Carlos found it nearly impossible to believe that he was seeing only a minuscule part of the universe. It felt like the little patch of sky above him _was_ the entire universe, although scientifically speaking it was impossible to see the entire universe at once….a shooting star came into view and he sat up to get a better look….

It wasn't a shooting star, it looked too big, it was too close….it cast a shadow on the desert sand below it...a patch of darkness that moved along the moonlit sand... Carlos's brain worked frantically for a scientific explanation... and the only plausible explanation made Carlos gape at the retreating _something_ with a child-like surprise and disbelief.

The rational part of his brain was quick to fire doubts and reasonable counter-arguments while also unable to deny that it could be possible…

Carlos blinked. The thing had already disappeared. Maybe he hadn't seen it at all, he reasoned with himself, but... maybe he had.

He spoke without turning his eyes away from the direction the thing had vanished.

"Cecil...did you just see that UFO?"

"No." Was the simple and disappointing reply that Carlos received.

If Cecil had answered the opposite then Carlos would have had evidence that the thing had been real and that he hadn't just imagined it. And that would have caused him to be immensely giddy with the possibilities that would imply.

Cecil's actual reply, warranted a different reaction.

Carlos sighed in annoyance and lay back down. "Are you kidding me," He whined. "It was _right_ there!" He gestured in the direction where the thing had disappeared.

Cecil started to laugh, "Aliens aren't real Carlos, just like mountains aren't real!"

Carlos turned his head to face Cecil. "Mountains _ARE_ real, Cecil I keep telling you that!"

 _And if mountains are real then why can't aliens be?_ Carlos thought to himself….he could see at least a little bit of logic as to why Cecil wouldn't believe in mountains what with him growing up in a desert that was pretty much all sand except for the one mountain with the lighthouse on top…but why didn't Cecil believe in aliens?

"How do you grow up in a place like Night Vale and not believe in aliens?" Carlos protested, still unable to drop the subject though now that he really thought about it, seeing a UFO in the middle of the desert did sound a bit cliche but it was still plausible!

Cecil shifted so that he was laying on his side instead of his back and he was now fully facing Carlos.

"I mean- haven't you seen Stars Wars!?" Carlos continued, desperate for anything that would make Cecil believe him. "Granted it's not entirely scientifically _accurate_ but-"

Cecil raised an eyebrow in confusion. "I have no idea what you're talking about." Cecil cut Carlos off, sounding utterly lost. "Oh nevermind! Of course you haven't seen Star Wars." Carlos huffed in annoyance.

"Okayyyy," Cecil said slowly, a slight smirk on his face.

This served to annoy Carlos further into his side of the argument.

"Honestly! How do you not believe in aliens? I mean- you live in a town full of Hooded Figures and five-headed dragons! This whole town screams 'crazy' and it doesn't follow the laws of physics or nature or anything! Is believing in extraterrestrials really that hard?"

Cecil was quiet for a moment and Carlos thought he might have finally gotten through to him.

"Can you prove that they exist?" Cecil questioned.

Carlos groaned.

"You're kidding me."

 _It's like we've switched places and he's being the one who wants all the evidence and the concrete details and I'm the one who sounds insane!_

Carlos took a deep breath before replying, staring up at the sky again.

"All this coming from a guy who lives in a town where the head of the PTA board is a mysterious Glow Cloud that rains dead animals!"

"Please don't mention the- ALL HAIL THE GLOW CLOUD." Cecil replied, drifting off into possessed-sounding monotone, violet colored eyes turning glassy.

Carlos flinched.

Cecil blinked once, his eyes focusing on Carlos again, looking miffed.

"Sorry! I forget that happens whenever someone mentions the-."

Cecil clapped his hand over Carlos's mouth before he could finish. "Don't say it again!" Cecil begged.

Carlos smiled against Cecil's palm and nodded.

Cecil moved his hand away.

Carlos started to laugh.

Cecil frowned. "I don't see what's so funny."

"I'm sorry, I don't know why we're still arguing about this. It's just- it's the job of a scientist to explain and figure out the unknown," Carlos gazed up at starry sky again. "And the universe is so infinite and it's always expanding so it just makes scientific sense that we aren't the only ones in it."

Cecil shifted to lay on his back again and resumed looking up at the stars as well.

"Mostly void, partially stars." Cecil murmured softly.

Carlos smiled.

"So listeners, If you ever look at the sky, doubting the existence of other worlds, just know that somewhere a creature looks up at its sky, doubting you," "Goodnight, Night Vale, Goodnight."


End file.
